It is known to provide a motor vehicle window shade with a winding shaft rotatably supported underneath a rear window shelf of the vehicle, as disclosed in DE 102 37 231. The rear window shelf has a slot through which a strip-shaped window shade can be extracted. A tension rod of the window shade moves in guide rails that are arranged laterally along the motor vehicle window. The window shade is has a spring motor that biases the winding shaft in the wind-up direction for the window shade. Two elongated actuating thrust elements are guided in guide rails in a buckle-proof fashion.
A positive connection is provided between the thrust elements and the tension rod by means of two hooks. One hook is mounted on the tension rod, and the other hook is mounted on the thrust element. This makes it possible to transmit a thrust force, as well as a tensile force, onto the tension rod by means of the actuating thrust elements. After the strip-shaped window shade is completely retracted, the positive connection between the tension rod and the thrust element is separated under the guidance and control of a cam. It is mentioned in the aforementioned reference that an excess travel can be achieved in this fashion in order to actuate a cover for the slot of the window shade by means of the opposite end of the thrust elements.
A window shade for a rear window of a motor vehicle is described in DE 102 23 028, wherein the winding shaft is adjustably supported underneath the rear window shelf. The winding shaft is arranged within a housing that can be raised slightly above the level of the rear window shelf in order to extract the window shade. In this case, an extraction slot, through which the window shade is extracted, becomes visible.
A tension rod, the ends of which are guided in guide rails, also is fixed on the strip-shaped window shade in this case. The actuation of the tension rod is effected by means of two thrust elements similar to that described above, except that the thrust elements are inseparably connected to the tension rod. When the tension rod is completely retracted into the cassette, the cassette is lowered into the rear window shelf with the aid of the driving force generated by the thrust elements that act as tension means during the retraction.